The Battle of The Dark Mold Begins

Kouki and Yasuhiro were already waiting at the Dark Mold entrance when they arrived. The 5 witches alongside them were already going back and forth with each other, arguing about stupid grudges that they had.

They had 2 days to destroy the Dark Mold, get everyone back, and deal with what came next. Akari Rekka was jumping up and down for joy, giggling constantly, not even knowing the seriousness of the situation.

Yahiko and Arata were ready to go as well.

Isara and her fairies were equipped alongside Natsuki and Ezra who came down from the Spirit Realm to help the battle. She was well needed as her strength was on par with a God, especially with her physical body back. However, she tried to enter the Dark Mold first and was repelled. She had figured so.

Ezra: “I cannot enter. My sword will not allow it. It chooses a different opponent for me. I’m sorry. This is as far as I go. I can still aid and boost everyone’s mana the best I can to prevent mana poisoning, but do not rely on me.”

Natsuki: “Hahaha! That’s okay. We have enough manpower to spread the love to everyone! We shall conquer this place!”

Agatha looked like she didn’t want to be there at all, but some surprising allies showed at the last second. Some faces lit up, and others diminished.

In front of them were Sayo Engetsu, the Dragon Empress, 9th Reverend of the Great Swordsmen, Kento Izuki, The Undefeated Fighter, 3rd Revered of the Great Swordsmen, and an old man that not a lot of people knew, but Agatha did. She looked at him, remembering his face, but he aged greatly. He specifically walked up to her and said, “Agatha, how have you been? You’re all grown up.”

Agatha: “Yeah, and you aged like a rotting banana. You’re going to fight with us? Pathetic. What’s an old man like you going to do?”

He didn’t like what had become of her. He was Akuma Kashi, the man that had saved the two kids from the grasps of the Flaen family. She could care less to see him, but he cared like never before. He didn’t say anything to Akari, and did not speak another word to Agatha for now, but he would fight alongside her and protect her with the strength he had left.

Kento: “Ah! Gather around, gather around! For I am here!”

Yasuhiro: “Kento, you bastard. Why weren’t you here earlier? You definitely felt the immense pools of mana. People were killed because of you!”

Kento: “Because of me? Wow, what a statement. Well, I was here, but in the distance, watching you all fail to amuse me. But then! I saw you battle what I did, not too long ago and wanted to jump in, but you all were going to be in the way and then get all upset when I killed you in the process of killing that thing. All I’m going to hear about for the rest of my life is, “Oh Kento how could you? Kento you monster. Kento you idiot.” I would rather not have you all pester me, so I stayed back. Oh, but then I saw those three walk out of that place and man oh man! I haven’t felt this excited in years. I went and grabbed Sayo because let’s be honest, she is stronger than most of you. Now, something I don’t see here is…Hmm, Wally, Clara, and Aamon. Oh, wait! Aamon’s mind is a total mess! I totally forgot! And Wally, and Clara. Ha! They died didn’t they?”

Yahiko: “Kento! Why are you being like this?!”

Kento appeared in his face in a flash, before Yahiko could even put a hand on his sword. The overwhelming difference was insane between the two of them, no, between all of them. Kento was on par with Michiaki’s level of combat.

In a serious tone, he spoke.

Kento: “Being like what?”

Yahiko swung his sword at him as he jumped back to Sayo. Sayo was grateful to come help. She explained her situation that she was helping a town get food with the disappearance of animals. She sensed the danger from far away, but figured that they had taken control of the situation with so many of them here. She bowed down and apologized for not being there.

Kento: “No Sayo, you shouldn’t apologize. They should all apologize for being so weak. No Wally, and no Clara either. I am very disappointed. Looks like they chickened out and died.”

Natsuki: “That’s not the cas–”

Kento: “Ah! Don’t ruin my vision of you, Natsuki. I do think you are the best one out of all of these fools. Although, Kouki…You’re pretty strong too considering your age.”

Kouki: “What a delight coming from you, you idiot.”

Kento: “Ha! Ha! Ha! Shall, we get rolling? The night is approaching! Maybe you all can use your moons right away as I take these fools down with the tip of my sword.”

Kento walked straight up to the Dark Mold.

He peered through his black blindfold, looking inside for what he could see.

He could see across realms and domains usually, and he looked and looked until seeing 100 different beings. He was excited to go, knowing what was inside and their strength. He walked in before anyone else. Everyone became aggravated, but followed him inside.

Night approached, and they were ready for what could be their last battle.

Inside was a void of nothingness. Black, red, and purple color replaced the scenery of a normal atmosphere. It wasn’t as if they couldn’t see, but no life existed. Kento whistled, and then shouted out for anyone that dared to challenge him, but nothing appeared.

Kento: “Yes! That’s it! They are scared! Well, we must keep walking then. If they won’t come to us, then we will go to them. Say, someone tell me exactly what this place is.”

Yahiko: “It’s a–”

Kento: “Ah, ah, ah! Not you, dimwit. Someone else.”

Isara: “Wh-Why are you so mean?”

Kento: “Hmm? The girl speaks? Let me see, let me see. Why am I so mean? I simply cannot find a reason.”

Ine: “Hey! Don’t talk to Isara like that!”

Kento: “Ah, the fairy comes out to play! I was waiting. You all tried your best to hide your presence, but you're the lower of the bunch. How has Morlin been? Last I saw Morlin, I was going to bathe in the hot springs of Taiphoon Swamps. I don’t like where she is now.”

Isara: “She? Morlin is a girl?”

Ine: “Don’t you talk about Morlin either, you good for nothing deadbeat. She isn’t here anymore.”

Kento: “Oh? You don’t know? Morlin is alive and well, and I know exactly where she is. Although, everytime I try to visit, she won’t let me out of that freaking hallucination, illusion thing that she does. I just wanna fight! Fight me Morlin! Fight me! Always putting all her strength in the illusions to stop me. What a sorry thing to do.”

Sarz: “Wh-What?”

Liz: “Morlin is–”

Ine: “Alive?”

Kento: “You all and that girl disgrace Michiaki for abandoning everyone here, well look at your own leader…she did the exact same thing. Hid away from responsibilities and is living her life away from every last fairy in this world. I must say, I respect the Elves. They seem to never cause trouble, and their mana pool is so strong that I don’t even think Michiaki and myself could burst a bubble in it. That is, if every single elf had a vendetta against us. Well, we can’t even find them anyways. Funny. This world is not that big and yet they have been hidden for such a long time.”

Isara’s fairies couldn’t fathom the information just given to them. They hid back away inside Isara, enraged, upset and then back to enraged. They were utterly confused if the information was even true coming from Kento, but Isara had used a Thinker Chaplet to make sure.

Kento: “You can put that Chaplet away. No need to waste that. I’m telling the truth.”

Sayo: “Umm, Mr. Kento, I think the girl is pretty distraught. Maybe you should leave her alone for a little bit.”

Kento: “If you say so, Sayo. I obey strength and you are the very definition of it unlike all these bums that walk behind me. Can’t believe you are only a 9th Reverend. You should be at least 5th. Kouki and Yasuhiro! You both disappoint me. Sacred tree my ass. I spent a long time at Beyblue Island to know what the true Sacred Tree is. You both feed off of its youth, too afraid to face the real thing. Probably because you’d die, well at least you, Yasuhiro.”

Yasuhiro: “Why you–!”

Kouki: “Brother, stop it. He’s provoking us to fight him. Plus, he’s right. We only harness a fraction of the Sacred Tree…I’ll have you know, Kento. It’s not us who are afraid to face the real Sacred Tree. It’s the tree itself. It doesn’t have the courage to face its mother. It’s a coward and I’ve let it know that hundreds of times. It doesn’t matter because it’ll never speak to her. We are working with what it’s giving us.”

Yasuhiro: “Yeah, so don’t call us cowards, you two faced piece of crap. You aren’t worthy of a Great Swordsman title.”

Kento: “Bash me all you want. The fact is I can take all of you in a fight right now without breaking a sweat.”

Natsuki: “Kento, stop it. Don’t act like there isn’t love in your heart. We are all a team right now. If you think you have so much strength, then show us when we get to these demons. I’ll even lend you the two shards we have. It takes me a lot of mana to control it. If Clara was here, I could, but you’re probably the only one who can do it right now.”

Kento: “Nah, I’ll pass. Keep those puppies handy for you all. I don’t need borrowed strength.”

Natsuki: “Very well. Don’t come crying to us when you’re spewing blood from every hole in your body. This is a fight to the death, Kento. This is what you wanted. In the next 5 minutes, love will be blinded by both sides and whoever is strong enough to succumb to their will is going to be victorious."

Kento: “Ah, one of my favorites, Natsuki Tooru. I applaud you myself. I shall not speak another word until we get there for your sake.”

Into the abyss, they walked until arriving at an escapade of troops. None of the people they were looking for remained at the scene, but they saw Astro’s scythe buried in the ground–A sign that they had arrived before them.

The troops were menacing.

Each one with armor that resembled a warrior, glaring at them through their masks and helmets. Looking up, they saw something interesting, but did not recognize it, that is…until Isara took a second look. “Welpen…” she whispered, not loud enough for anyone to hear. A man with three colored hair, black gloves, wrist straps, ear piercings, glaring yellow eyes, necklaces, and an outfit that touched darkness at its core.

He turned towards them along with everyone behind him, looking down at them as if they were small fry in a vast sea of sharks and whales. Without introducing himself, he immediately put out his hand and clenched his fist, which ensnared everyone’s throats in a chokehold, except for Kento and Sayo.

Natsuki and Yahiko, who were hiding the shards in their clothes, were affected, but not as much, and faked the pressure held on them.

Kento: “Really guys? I’m only going to do this once, and then we can activate our moons…Fool’s Gold!”

Kento had realized right away that it was no different than a barrier around their necks and shattered it. It was invisible, but it was reality, and anything in reality could be broken.

Kento: “Alright! Don’t pull that trick again or I’m going to lose it! That thing next to you looks like the strongest here. Come! Fight me! I don’t want any of you weaklings. I’m gonna strip that long white hair off and make a wig out of it.!”

Welpen: “Ha…Haha….Hahahaha…HAHAHAHAHA! I’m not strong enough?! Nightmare, is this true?”

Nightmare: “No, my liege. That is a lie. You are the strongest among us.”

Welpen: “Is that so? And who might you be?”

Kento: “I am–”

Welpen: “Not you! Do not speak! Who is she?”

Kento: “Huh? Don’t talk to me like that!”

Kouki: “Two babies fighting back and forth.”

Yasuhiro: “What a joke. Although, everyone here is strong. Stronger than I thought.”

Sayo: “Umm, I’m Sayo Engetsu. Pleasure to meet you, sir demon.”

Welpen: “You do not quake at my strength. You are strong. I want you as my bride.”

All: “Huhhhh?!”

Welpen: “Nightmare, take that woman and kill the rest. I don’t care what you do with them. Also, bring Iki when you’re done. His father is requesting an audience.”

Nightmare: “As you wish, master.”

Kento: “Hey, you might think that you mastered strength and are above all. You were only just a kid not too long ago apparently. Strength doesn’t just happen like that, it is earned. It takes relentless effort until you can relax and reap the benefits and even then, there is a stereotype to uphold. I’ve reached that point and I can challenge whoever I want. You, the one who came to our world…You encountered the strength of a mighty man in our society. What did you think of him?”

He pointed at Black Diamond and told him this, knowing that he would lie.

Black Diamond: “He was strong, but our people are stronger."

Kento: “Wrong. This Thinker Chaplet says otherwise. You succumbed to his ideals to avoid being killed. Now, I’ll ask you, Nightmare, was it? Do you think you’re stronger than me? The chaplet does not lie.”

Nightmare: “Without a doubt, you are a weakling and a nuisance to our realm. Everyone here is stronger than you.”

Kento: “Wrong again. Nightmare! Answer the question! Are you stronger than me?!”

He paused for a second, not to think, but just to set the tension.

Nightmare: “Yes.”

The Thinker Chaplet lit up green, stating that it was correct. Kento broke it on the ground and laughed, finally having a challenger that is worthy of battling him. “I better take this pretty seriously then, ay?”

Kento: “Bound by starlight and forgotten time, those that illuminate the world ablaze, heed my voice across the void, tear your tether from the sky, let gravity weep and shatter its knowledge…Lunar Descent!”

Kento’s body lit up in a golden light completely, taking away his clothes and armor that he had and even his sword, but swords remained behind him, consisting of Poison Chaplets, Smile Chaplets, Levitation Chaplets, Soul Chaplets, and Arcanum Chaplets.

He showed nothing else, only these chaplets that hovered in the open slots on his 10 swords, all mimicking the one that he had. The rest of them followed in suit behind him, chanting the chant to activate their moons, each lighting up a different color that corresponded with their mana lines. Everyone somewhat looked the same except for the color, however Kento’s blindfold still remained.

Kento: “I didn’t want to have to do this right away, but let’s just see how it goes. I’m pretty pissed at that comment, Black Diamond. In your next life, maybe you should tell the truth a little more.”

He took off his blindfold, showing his eyes underneath, however it wasn’t eyes, it was chaplets. It was glass chaplets that he had been storing there in place of his eyes for time that nobody knew. Two glass orbs containing only a glowing red diamond in one and a glowing yellow diamond in the other. Two chaplets not listed in any books because they were only a rumor. It was the first time that they had ever been used, and Kento had been holding onto them for years.

Kento: “These two tiny little things required a sacrifice from me. This is my first time using them though, but I know they will be worth it. Now, I don’t wanna spoil all the fun, but let’s just test it real quick before everyone gets serious. Hey, Black Diamond…”

Kento turned and looked at him in his eyes.

Black Diamond did not care for this pity act. He didn’t believe that Kento was strong enough to hurt a fly, but he waited patiently before Kento looked him directly in his eyes where the yellow diamond lit up and said, “Death do us part.”

Black Diamond’s body started to expand, and then exploded before anyone could do anything. Blue blood splattered everywhere, but then everyone acted like nothing had happened in the next moment. That is because this chaplet’s ability was drawn off of imagery, known as the Imagination Chaplet.

This chaplet was even a rumor to Michiaki Sen himself who had never seen them as well as the rest of the world, swordsmen and all. It was mainly called this because it was imaginary to everyone like it didn’t exist, but Kento had it all along. A chaplet specifically designed for killing and erasing someone from the world with no memory of them whatsoever, hence is why nobody could ever get to 70 chaplets.

Nobody responded because nobody remembered what happened or who Black Diamond was, however interesting enough, a new seed was planted as if someone had died. Everyone looked at it confused.

Welpen: “Nightmare, why is there a seed planted as if one of our men were killed?”

Nightmare: “I-I do not know.”

Welpen: “They couldn’t have done anything. My speed is far greater. My eyes would have sensed something.”

Nightmare: “I-I do not know, master.”

Welpen: “Fine. I’ll play your game you stupid, filthy human. Everyone! Heed my call! Kill every last one of them!”

Kento laughed in excitement.

The downside to the Imagination Chaplet was that the cooldown time was extremely long. It would be another 24 hours until he could use it, but the red diamond lit up on the other one shortly before everyone attacked each other.

Isara stayed in the back, not knowing what to do, but her fairies guided her. Agatha and Akari Rekka immediately activated the Dougen Sword, combining their mental states and efforts. Even though Agatha was not scared at all, she knew that she had to protect her brother from these monsters whose strength seemed unmatched, separate from the world and power system that they knew. She sat back, not letting him approach, first letting the Swordsmen go ahead of them.

A voice screamed out from behind them.

It was Ren.

Ezra had explained what had happened to her, however she did not enter the Spirit Realm, so she was not yet dead. He believed in this and came to help heal everyone the best he could.

Ren: “Hey! Everyone! You all better freaking win this battle! I got places to be and people to save! I want this over with quickly!”

Kento: “Ha! Don’t get your panties in a jiffy. We’re all ready to go. Don’t you dare heal me. I’ll do things myself.”

Ren: “Safe Haven’s Enchanted Mystical Chambers of Mending!”

This was one of Ren’s most powerful abilities learned over the years with the knowledge of the Great Sovereign. It granted abilities to everyone similar to Blood Chaplets that healed their wounds instantly if damaged. It also creates powerful shields of mana around them that, when broken, they heal their swords and bodies.

Of course, he put this on everyone except Kento.

The stage was set.